3 Ways to Save Money in Your Household You May Have Never Considered #SunrunHome #CG

Have you ever felt like you've cut down on so much, as far as spending goes in your household, that there really is nowhere left to cut?  You've switched from cable to strictly streaming media, stopped eating out, bring lunches to work and school from home, rent instead of going out to the movies, take shorter showers, changed all your light bulbs to CFLs, and more.  What could be left?  Well, I wanted to share 3 fairly simple ways you can save money that you may have never considered before.


3 More Ways to Save Money in Your Household . . .

1.  Spend more time together as a family.  When I was a child, if I was reading in the living room, but my sister was drawing at the kitchen table, then my mother would tell me to go read at the kitchen table?  Why?  Well, it was so we didn't have to have more lights on in the house than necessary.  I used think it was just one of my mother's quirks, but now that I'm paying the electric bill, I can understand her logic.  So, why can't the whole family be in the living room at night, even if one is reading, one is on their tablet, another is on their laptop, and someone else is watching television?  It may not seem like a huge difference, but every little bit counts and, if you tracked the savings from month to month and from year to year, you'll realize that it really did make a difference.

2.  Downsize to one car, if possible.  Of course this is not always possible and it's not always convenient, but it is feasible for many households.  We were forced to put this to the test when my husband's old car couldn't pass inspection and needed a lot of maintenance.  Until we could get that taken care of, we were down to one car.  It forced us to consolidate our errands and to organize our out-of-the-house activities in a more sensible way.  We save a lot of money in gas that way.  If we decide to just get rid of the car, then we would save even more money on having one less car to insure and to pay excise tax on.

3.  Rent solar panels for your home.  You might think that this would be a huge ordeal, but the use of solar paneling has become more common in recent years.  We live in a townhouse, so we are not able to save money on electricity this way, but we have close friends who had solar paneling installed over a year ago with no money upfront from a reputable company, like Sunrun.  They pay a set amount per month for their solar electricity, approximately $50 less than what I normally pay per month for standard electricity.  They only need to pay an electricity bill if they go over their allotted solar electricity usage. They are locked into that rate for 20 years, which sounds fantastic because of all the talk about how the cost of electricity will be rising significantly in the future.  I believe in our state, you also receive a tax break for going solar.  Leasing solar panels is a money-savings option that should definitely be explored further, plus it's better for the environment.

Learn more about saving money with solar power in the video below.  Visit Sunrun.com to find out how you can get a solar lease with little or no money upfront. We have a special offer for 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires readers. If you go solar with Sunrun before Nov. 30, you'll get a $500 VISA® Prepaid Card. (Conditions apply.) Get a free solar quote here.


I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Building a Home Library For Young Avid Readers

When I was a young child, I remember going to our local free public library about once a week with my family. My parents thought reading was important and that was their way of encouraging my sister and I to read.  Also, it didn't hurt that it didn't cost them anything but their time.

Since our lives are so busy and hectic, we actually rarely have time to go to the library, except during summer vacation.  I find it easier to just order books for my children through their school to support their classrooms and to shop for books online.  I buy the most books for our oldest son, who is currently 9.  Even at an early age, he was an avid reader.  I actually do not mind buying books for him because he loves them so much and these books will get passed down to his two younger siblings.

It seemed like overnight that our son went from reading his first book with chapters to reading books written for 7th and 8th graders.  I quickly realized that I should not bother buying him books that were under 150 pages, otherwise he would finish the book in one sitting.  Now most of the books I buy for him are 300+ pages long.  Another thing I started to realize is that longer books also cost more, even in paperback.  That's when I transitioned from buying new books to shopping for bargain books and like-new used books whenever possible.  This was a big step for me because I rarely feel comfortable with buying anything used, aside from cars and wood furniture.  I have to admit that it has worked out well for us.  My son still enjoys the books just as much as if I had not paid a fraction of the price for them.

Were do you shop for books?

9 Money-Saving Tips for Parents

Parents are often faced with many obstacles when it comes to raising their kids, and saving money might be one of the biggest ones. That’s why today, we’re going to present 9 helpful tips that will help you to save money, but still be able to provide.

The desire to provide only the best for your kids is something all parents have, but as many can tell you, this is also an easy way to go for broke. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can shop for the must-haves and the luxuries, while still maintaining a stable budget.

So what can you do? Here are a few tips:

1. Thrift Shops: Because sometimes the key to saving money is learning how to “pop some tags.” Thrift shops are great places where you can find items for both yourself and your kids, whether it’s clothing, toys and games, or furniture, and best of all, it’s available to you at a fraction of what you’d find elsewhere.

2. Consignment: From clothing to home décor and even more, consignment shops are great places to find high quality goods for less. On the flipside of that, if you have no more use for some of your items, you can put them up for sale for others to enjoy, while also making a little cash for yourself.

3. Make A List: It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book, and it’s still around because it still works. Before you go shopping, create a list of everything you need. This can help eliminate the temptation to impulse shop.

4. Rewards Programs: You may be loyal to a certain brand or store, so why not get rewarded for it? See if your favorite place has a rewards program set into place. Doing so makes you eligible for future discounts, exclusive promotional items, and can even sends you notifications on upcoming sales events and more.

5. Hand-Me-Downs: Have any friends or family around you with kids of varying ages? If this is the case, consider creating a system where every so often, you swap clothes. This can help you save money on having to buy new clothes once your child outgrows their old ones. Plus, if it’s still in good condition, you don’t have to feel bad about having to throw it out or discarding it.

6. Shop Out Of Season: This might sound odd, but sometimes the best times to shop for certain essentials is to buy it at the end of the season. For example, stories tend to put summer apparel and accessories on clearance to make room for their fall inventory. Likewise, fall must-haves will be discounted once winter begins, and so on…

7. Join The Club: From memberships to places like Costco or even exclusive online clubs, this is a great way to grab what you need for less. Yes, this might include a membership fee, but if you’re a frequent shopper, you will get more than your money’s worth.

8. Don’t Spend Money You Don’t Have: This might seem like a common sense tip, but you’d be amazed at how many people fall into this trap. Unless you have the money, and it’s something that tends to be more of a want or a luxury than a necessity, it’s probably best to put off buying it. Plus, eventually everything goes on sale…

9. Coupons!: Convenient, accessible, fail-safe and most of the time, they’re free! Coupons are one of the best ways that you can still shop for some of the brand name goods that you know and love while avoiding paying full retail for them.

And of course, DefinitiveDeals is your place to get all of the savings you want. Thousands of coupons are at your disposal from some of your favorite stores. Now you can save a few dollars while shopping for all of the essentials. Best of all, it doesn’t cost you anything to use them, because as we like to say, “life is meant to be enjoyed.”

To learn more, check out our official website here.

Improve Your Financial Position This Summer

This post was brought to you by Shay Quincy

With the economy only recently showing signs of improvement, it’s worthwhile remaining vigilant when it comes to your finances. Thankfully, there are a number of ways you can stay on top of your money, whether that means getting a credit card with a better deal or just cutting your expenses in general. Why not see if some of the following tips can help you?

Stop unnecessary payments
Are you guilty of signing up to an expensive gym contract, with the best intentions of attending regularly but failing to do so? If that’s the case then look to cancel it as soon as possible as the monthly fees can soon add up. The same applies to any subscriptions you have, so think about whether you can do without them and check your bank statement for any outgoings you are uncertain of, as it can be easy to forget what you’re buying.

Find a good credit card deal
It’s always useful to have a little extra cash available for a rainy day, but make sure you compare credit cards to find the right product for you, rather than settling for the first one you come across. Think about how you plan to use your plastic and try to find a preferential rate of interest, because in the event you aren’t able to repay your balance in full one month this will help to keep costs down.

Stay within your limits
If you’re approved for a credit card the lender will give you a credit limit. Be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully as exceeding this amount is likely to trigger an additional fee. Of course, the same can also apply to your bank account, so why not make a habit of regularly checking your balance using online banking?

Bank online
If you’ve not already signed up for online banking, then now might be the right time to do so. If you’re not currently the most organized financially and your busy lifestyle makes it seem difficult to do so, then this might be the way to make a change. Gone are the days where you need to call the bank to check your balance or make a payment, as it’s possible to do all this online. If you’re a smartphone user then it might be easier still because many banks now offer dedicated apps, letting you handle your account on the move.

Do you have any tips for improving your personal finances to add to this list?

Tech Tip: Save Money By Building Your Own PC

There are so many ways to save money these days, but so many are overlooked. I work in IT and I am always amazed at how easy it is to build a computer from scratch . . . so amazed that I truly believe that ANYBODY could build their own PC from scratch with just a little instruction, and more importantly: with very few tools! Building your own PC will also save you a fair chunk of money.


There are two major benefits to building a PC yourself:

1. You can build your machine cheaper than any pre built machine by as much as 30% (or more).

or

2. You can spend your entire budget and build a PC far more powerful than what the same money would buy you off the shelf.


Possibly the most unbelievable fact is that the parts you use to build your own machine are all top quality name brand parts (you can't always be assured of that with an off the shelf machine).

As far as choosing the parts are concerned, it is really not that hard. Many parts retailers offer all the information you need to pair up your components so everything works together. There are countless websites and forums out there that provide step-by-step instructions on choosing your hardware and assembling everything once you are ready. I think most people would be surprised just how few parts make up the insides of an average PC tower.

Once you have chosen your components, the assembly only takes about one to two hours depending on the complexity of the build. For most builds, the only tool required is a Philips head screwdriver! Many PC cases are “tool less” and you may not need to use your screwdriver that much at all. You will not need to solder anything, in fact, so long as you work in a static free location you really do not need to worry about much at all.

Another benefit of building your own PC is the fact that it increases your understanding of your PC, arguably one of the most important tools in our lives right now. The more you understand about the inner working of your PC the less you will need to pay somebody else for repairs if something goes wrong in the future.

Not only can you save money by assembling your PC on your own, you can also save a bunch of money on the individual parts. Many retailers have daily deals and sales that can dramatically add to your savings. One of the most popular parts sites on the web is Newegg.com. I use it personally, and at the office as well, for nearly every part I need.

In addition to the retailers themselves offering deals and sales on parts, some services can optimize your shopping with extra savings and promo codes like this 10% off Newegg coupon.

I truly feel anybody can build their own PC with a little time and patience (very little!). In addition to saving a bunch of money you can be proud of an achievement that many will never enjoy themselves. You know what feels the very best (other than the savings)? The best feeling is when somebody you know decides to build their own and asks you for help!

Visit a few sites like Tom’s Hardware, Newegg, and Youtube and do some preliminary research. Once you see how easy it is, check online for any available promo codes.

If you choose to build your own PC, don't hesitate to post here and ask me some specific questions, I promise to answer them all. I would be happy to rate your parts selection before you buy.


This post was provided by Save1, a family owned coupon site that feeds malnourished children. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Add Some Dimension to Your School Project With Elmer's (#GlueNGlitter #CBias)

Recently, I signed my children up for a parent volunteer-run program called "Kids With A Cause" at school. It is a group based on giving back through community service.  They will start meeting at the end of this month and I just cannot wait for my children to experience that unique feeling of helping those who are less fortunate.

I believe in leading by example, so I was thrilled to be chosen for my first Simple Service Project for Champions For Kids, an organization that focuses on benefiting children.  This energy savings project is perfect for me because I had the chance to be a little crafty and I was able to make a donation to my children's classrooms. I always try to keep up to date with the teachers' wishlists because I feel that the teachers should not have to spend so much of their own money to furnish their classrooms with supplies.  The topic of my project, which was how much money one would save if they switch from standard light bulbs to GE CFL energy saving bulbs, was interesting to me because, although I have been using CFL bulbs for years, I never really knew how much money I saved by doing so . . . until now.

Today's Project:  A 3-Dimensional Display Board On Saving Money by Using GE CFL Bulbs

SUPPLIES NEEDED:

Elmer's 36" x 48" Corrugated Tri-Fold Display Board

Pretend Paper Money and Coins

Pointed or Chisel-tipped Magic Markers

Elmer's School Glue

Ruler

Step 1. Use the GE energy smart® calculator to determine how much money you save per room each year by entering the quantity of each type of light bulb you use in each room.

Step 2.  With the help of a ruler, divide the display board vertically into sections proportionate to how much money you save in each room.  Then use the fine tip of one or more colors of magic markers to draw horizontal dotted lines across the left and center sections of the display board.

Step 3.  With a dark magic marker and the help of a ruler, draw the outline of a house that spans the entire height and width of the center section of the display board.

Step 4.  Fill in the names of the various rooms you have included in your calculations on the left section of the display board.  Then fill in the amount of money you are estimated to save in each room according to the energy calculator you used in the center section of the display board.  Lastly, write in any information you would like to share about this project on the right-hand section of the display board.

Step 5.  To add dimension to the display, give the paper money a wavy and curly look by tacking it down to the display board with Elmer's School Glue.  Instead of gluing all the bills flat, make some of them curly by tacking down in one spot (allowing the glue to dry for a few seconds) and then rumpling the bill and tacking it down in a second spot to help maintain the rumpled look.  You can also curl the edges and corners of the bills with your fingers.

Step 6.  To add further dimension to your display board, glue some of the bills facing forward onto the back of the display board.

I have to say that my children were extremely impressed by what I could do with a little Elmer's School Glue and some magic markers.  What do you think?  Do I get an "A" on my project?

My original idea for a donation to my children's school was to buy some Elmer's supplies for the art room.  However, Walmart seemed to be running low on just about everything that would fit into my budget, so I opted for a small supply of glue sticks for each of my children's classrooms.  They were so proud to have something to contribute to their classes, especially items that they use almost daily.

To see more great projects on behalf of Champions For Kids, visit Elmer's and GlueNGlitter on Twitter, as well as Elmer's Craft It!, GlueNGlitter, and Champions For Kids on Facebook.


I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Elmer’s #CBias #SocialFabric #GlueNGlitter.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Getting Ready for Those College Costs

My children are still young and high school seems like years away. The day they go off to college, then, currently feels like a lifetime in the future. I simply can’t imagine having my children grown, out of the house, and no longer needing their mom on a daily basis.

But, as we all know, time moves quickly and our kids always grow up faster than we’d like. This means that we should certainly take advantage of every opportunity that we have to live in the moment, appreciate the time we have to spend with our children, and enjoy the process before it gets too late. It also means that it is never too early to start looking towards college on a financial level. College costs are incredibly expensive these days, and the price of tuition is high enough at most schools to put a considerable burden on all but the wealthiest of families.

On this note, my husband and I have decided to start saving and planning now. We don’t know what our children’s future hold, but we want to be prepared for any eventuality. Here’s what we’re planning to do:

Contribute Regularly to a College Fund  The best way to save for college is by regularly contributing money to a dedicated savings account, just as one would do when planning for retirement. We are going to open an account for each of our children and routinely set aside part of our paycheck for reinvestment in these accounts. If you do your research, you can probably find some investments that are specifically geared towards college savings and provide higher interest rates, such as a 529 plan. Any online student resource should be able to help you get started.

Allocate Our Assets With a Long-Term Focus  For the last few years, as careers have changed and children have been born, my husband and I have approached our financial lives with a more short and medium-term focus. When choosing a credit card, for example, we have looked for the best cash back credit card offers or have gone for the Chase Freedom card, which offers great monthly rebates. But now our financial plan has begun to take a much more long-term approach. Specifically, we want to minimize the assets that colleges will evaluate when determining financial aid. This means contributing more to retirement accounts and refinancing our mortgage so that we don’t own our home in 15 years.

Getting Our Children Involved  My husband and I hope to contribute significantly to our kids’ college costs, but that doesn’t mean we want to completely shoulder the burden alone. Instead, we want paying for college to be a full-family effort. To this end, we hope to raise our kids with a comprehension of the college situation and an expectation that they will help us out in the ways that they can. As they grow older, I hope that our children’s babysitting and summer jobs can contribute in part to our university savings fund. I don’t want to deprive them of all their earning, and I know that what they add to the fund won’t be much, but on principle I still believe that the expense of college should reflect a communal family effort.

These are the ways that my husband and I are beginning to plan for the eventual cost of our children’s college tuition. Although I certainly have no idea where my kids will be in 15 years, I hope that they are getting a good education and I pray that we are prepared to help them finance it.

This has been an advertorial guest post.

3 Ways to Cut Costs Around the House

See these three children? They may be cute, but they each cost a lot of money to raise. Although I have not focused on it, I have shared a bit about how tough the past few years have been for my family financially. To sum it up, before we could fully recover from my husband losing his job two years prior, my husband lost his job again nearly 3 years ago, took out a student loan to go back to school to change his career path, and eventually found a job in the right field. However, it was not quite enough to cover our household expenses when combined with the income I make working from home. That is probably a story that you have heard too many times in recent years.

One of the steps we have taken to better our situation is get a home loan modification.  It took us a year and a half to actually get our mortgage company to help us, but eventually they did.  Although we do not generate any new credit card debts, we do have some very old ones that we had to stop paying on because of our circumstances.  We also have a lot of medical bills hanging over our heads, and need to put together a plan to pay off debt once we are in a more stable financial situation.  To help us feel like we are being proactive in the present, there are a few household expenses we are trying to reduce.


3 Ways to Cut Household Spending . . .

1.  Drink filtered water - Our family of 5 was accustomed to drinking spring water that we purchased by the case and by the gallon.  Although it took us a little while to get use to it, I have to say 85% of the water we drink now is from our countertop water filtration system.  Our children have sets of reusable bottles that I keep filled for them.  We are lucky that our tap water is safe and tastes just fine.  I would say we save around $300/year by doing this.

2.  Switch from cable to streaming video - We have not done this yet, but are seriously considering replacing our cable service with streaming video on each television in the house.  Each box would allow that television to access video from services like Netflix and Hulu Plus.  My husband estimates that we would save about $840/year if we do this.

3.  Bringing lunches from home - My husband can buy lunch for just over $5 from the cafeteria at work, but he could bring lunch and cut that cost by quite a bit.  Even if he picked out some quality frozen entrees on sale instead of taking leftovers, the cost would be about half.  It costs my son $2.50 to buy lunch from school.  Packing a lunch for him from home would also cost about half of that.  Taking lunches from home is something  my husband and 2nd grader already do, but only about 50% of the time.  We can certainly do better.  Between the two of them, even if they only saved $10 a week, that would be $520/year.

I know that saving $1500 in one year is not going to significantly help us pay off bills faster, but it is the difference between our children being able to take part in playing soccer and taking a dance class or not.  I think those experiences are worth a lot more than the amount of effort it takes to make those few changes.

If you have other ideas about how to cut costs around the house, I would love to hear them.

Shell and Stop & Shop Make Traveling More Affordable

Since many travelers are opting to drive rather than take a train or fly to their business or vacation destinations this summer, there have been quite a few watchful eyes on the price of gas.  Will you be able to afford to drive across the country or just halfway?  Well, the Stop & Shop Gas Reward Program may just give you the extra savings you need to go a little further away from home.  What use to be a program that required customers to purchase their gas from Stop & Shop branded gas stations is now a program that includes Stop & Shop gas stations and approximately 600 Shell gas stations throughout the Northeast.


Stop & Shop Gas Reward Program Summary:

• For every $1 spent at Stop & Shop supermarkets, you will earn 1 point.
• 100 points saves you 10 cents/gallon at participating Shell and Stop & Shop gas stations. 200 points saves you 20 cents/gallon and so forth, up to $2.20 off per gallon.
• Points expire after 30 days from the date of issue.
• You can redeem your points at the pump by sliding your Stop & Shop card through the machine or typing in the numbers on the back of your key tag.
• There is a maximum of 35 gallons of fuel per purchase.
• You can earn extra points by purchasing specially marked products in the store.  For example, there may be a sign that states you can earn X number of extra points if you purchase 6 of these products.

To learn more about this program, visit www.Shell.US/StopAndShop or www.StopAndShop.com, where you can also check your Gas Rewards balance.

Thank you to Stop & Shop and Shell for providing a gift card for our contest prize and for sending a second gift card to me as a thank you for participating in this campaign.

What you can win:
One lucky reader will receive a $25 Shell gas card.

Limitations:
This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.

How to Gain Entries:

Leave a comment telling me what destination would you like to visit on your next driving vacation. You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.

Extra Entries:

1)  For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.


2)  For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.

3)  For 1 extra entry each, Friend me on Facebook and/or "Like" the 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires Facebook page, then leave a separate comment here telling me so with the link to your Facebook profile.

4)  Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.

5)  Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.

6)  Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

7)  Subscribe to A Blog of Goodies' feed (the sister site to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)


Random Drawing:

This contest will be closed on Monday, July 18th, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

Good luck in the drawing!